This invention relates generally to the field of devices for cardiac surgery, and more specifically to devices for R-F ablation of cardiac tissue.
The present invention is directed toward treatment of tachyarrhythmias, which are heart rhythms in which a chamber or chamber of the heart exhibits an excessively fast rhythm. In particular, the present invention is directed toward treatment of tachycardias, which are due to the presence of ectopic foci within the cardiac tissue or due to the presence of aberrant conduction pathways within the cardiac tissue.
Therapies have been developed for treating tachycardias by destroying cardiac tissue containing identified ectopic foci or aberrant conduction pathways. A variety of approaches have been taken, including application of electrical energy or other forms of energy to destroy the undesired cardiac tissue. As examples, ablation of cardiac tissue has been accomplished by means of radio frequency electrical current, microwave energy, heat, electrical pulses, cryothermy, and lasers. At present, ablation using R-F energy is perhaps the most widely practiced in the context of ablation procedures that can be carried out by means of a catheter, inserted into the closed heart.
Most R-F ablation catheters employ electrodes which are intended to contact the endocardium of the heart, or, as in U.S. Pat. No. 5,083,565, are intended to penetrate the endocardium and enter the myocardium. In general, R-F ablation catheters are effective to induce small lesions in heart tissue including the endocardium and inner layers of myocardium, in the immediate vicinity of the electrode. However, the medical community has expressed a desire for devices which produce larger lesions, to reduce the number of applications of R-F energy (burns) required to effectively ablate the cardiac tissue associated with the tachycardia.
R-F ablation causes tissue in contact with the electrode to heat as a result of resistance of the tissue to the induced electrical current therethrough. The actual extent of heating is somewhat unpredictable. However, temperature tends to rise as the duration and amplitude of the R-F signal increase. Heating of the tissue beyond a certain point (i.e. 100 degrees C.) can cause dissection or charring of the tissue, resulting in a high impedance between the R-F electrode and the return electrode, which in turn leads to cessation of the heating process, and, in some cases, causes the electrode to stick to the charred tissue. One response to this phenomenon has been the inclusion of thermocouple within the ablation electrode, in conjunction with feedback control to modulate the R-F signal to maintain the electrode temperature at a set parameter. One such system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,122,137.